Through the Chaos

The Parade

People of all shapes and sizes cheered as Astrid and Randy stepped off the train. People with styled hair, no hair, and people who wore large hats cheered their names as Nuyun and Layla escorted the two to a nearby black car. As the four walked to the sleek vehicle, Astrid saw several people wearing the finest clothing she had ever seen. Sure there were the people from District 1, but the residents of the Capitol were like a step up from them.

The dark vehicle drove off with Nuyun, Layla, Astrid and Randy inside. Astrid watched silently as the car drove through the crowd, the crowd thinning as they went further away from the station. They approached a large building where other similar vehicles sat parked.

"Alright, you two. Just walk in and the Avoxes inside will handle the rest. We will see you at the end." Nuyun gave a small smile to the two tributes before watching them step out of the vehicle. Not being the first, and definitely not being the last, tributes to arrive at the workshop, both Astrid and Randy walked to the front entrance with a deep worry in their minds. What waited for them inside was a complete mystery. Nuyun and Layla didn't explain what was to come once they stepped through the doors.

Like Nuyun had stated before they left, there were Avoxes awaiting the tributes inside. The two who stood at the doors wore similar outfits, remaining silent as they took Astrid and Randy to the preparation rooms. However, the two would be split up. Boys to the left, girls to the right.

Within each room, there would be stations for each individual tribute. To save the diginities of the women and to keep the two separated, both men and women were sent to different, yet identical rooms. Silver tables sat behind curtains, and even more curtains divided each tribute. The Avox with Randy walked him down to the sixth section where a resident of the Capitol waited. A male, who stood next to the silver table, handed over Randy a dressing gown. He was to undress and lay on the table nearby so he could be prepared for the later events of the Tribute parade.

Astrid would be met with the same scene, her Avox escorting her to her designated prep station where a woman who looked similar to the man with Randy would greet her. Astrid, like Randy, would also be asked to change into the simple gown and lay on the silver table. It was odd, but it was necessary for all tributes to be required to go through this process.

Their hair was cut, removing any split ends and flaws. Their skin washed and waxed so no stubble or in-grown hair shown during any on-air moments. Some tributes would take longer than others, for either they had more hair than others or had a bigger body mass. But after several hours of shaving, waxing, scrubbing and plucking, all the tributes would be wheeled to a private room.

Randy lay on the cool steel table, his eyes wandering around the ceiling. His thoughts swam in his head, his main thoughts thinking about his lover back home. However, his thoughts would be interrupted when the door would open and a man with burnt orange hair that fell down past his shoulders would walk in. The outfit he wore was a simple red buttoned shirt, the long sleeves rolled up past his elbows. The dark pants he wore made it seem like he was inspired by fire itself.

He bowed to Randy, "Greetings. I am honored to be your designer. I am Nasir." Randy sat up as Nasir spoke, shaking his hand when it was presented to him.

"I'm Randy." The two shared a moment of silence before Nasir helped Randy stand from the table, a grin coming across his face.

"I am sure you are well aware of the events of tonight. The Tribute parade. Everyone from all 12 Districts will be placed in outfits that are symbolic of their respective homes. Since you are from District 6, your outfits will be inspired by your home of transportation. But if it were up to me, I wouldn't place you in the outfits based off of your district. Let's be real, transportation is a ridiculous inspiration. However, I am a genius when it comes to designing, so I won't let you fall flat." He'd give a mischievous wink to Randy, pulling out a sketchbook from his back pocket.